Waterford — During a stakeholder meeting held by Dominion at the Millstone Simulator Building Tuesday, Millstone Power Station site Vice President John Daugherty addressed recently identified apparent violations that occurred at Millstone.

These apparent violations have occurred as far back as 2002, according to a presentation during the meeting.

In addition, the overview noted that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission stated in a letter about the incidents that "willfulness" was associated with an apparent violation involving the charging pumps at Unit 2.

During a question and answer period after the presentation, Waterford resident John “Bill” Sheehan — who sits on the town's Board of Finance — asked what a finding of willful violation would mean.

“Willful sounds like somebody did it on purpose,” said Sheehan.

Daugherty said that the NRC has two categories for willful. The first category is deliberate, and means that an individual intended to commit the violation; the second is careless disregard and means that the an individual may have been aware of the possibility that a violation could result from the action and went ahead with it without rectifying the potential issue.

Millstone Manager of Communications Ken Holt explained after the meeting that, should the apparent violation involving the charging pumps be proved after investigation by the NRC, it could be classified as careless disregard.

Of the three recently identified apparent violations from 2011 at Unit 2, which may have been occurring as far back as 2002, two are being considered for escalated enforcement.

State Sen. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, asked why the NRC was just now bringing attention to the apparent violations if some of them could go back as far as 2002. Daugherty said the question would need to be directed to the NRC.

"Regardless of how long it took, an apparent violation is an apparent violation and we will do everything we need to do as if it happened yesterday," said Daugherty.

State Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Rob Klee has noted that these three recently identified apparent violations — following three mid-level safety violations in 2014 and a fourth last month — have “potential significant public health and safety implications.”

Ed and Laurette Saller, a couple whose property abuts Millstone, raised concerns about the safety of dry cask storage of spent nuclear fuel. Ed Saller asked if Millstone had a system that the power station had practiced in the event of leakage of fuel from a cask.

Holt explained after the question and answer section that Millstone's practice would be to return the broken cask to a storage pool where the fuel would be extracted and pumped into a new cask. He said Millstone had practiced the precaution with casks that did not contain nuclear fuel.

Saller said his question was not related to the recent apparent violations being investigated by NRC.

In other business, presenters announced plans to work on a long-term solution for a clogged pipe that connects Cranberry Pond to Long Island Sound. A portion of the less than 10 acre body of water lies on Millstone property, according to Don Landers, supervisor of Millstone's environmental lab. Holt said the pond is not impacted by Millstone operations and that plans to deal with the clogged pipe were purely related to improving the local environment.

Sand and debris in the pipe is not allowing natural tidal flow between the pond and the sound, according to Landers. He said the initial short-term solution would be to unclog the pipe.

“Save the Sound is applying for a federal grant for wetland restoration that would address the problem,” the PowerPoint stated.

Following the presentation, attendees were given the opportunity to tour the power station's simulated control room and see-through reactor.

t.townsend@theday.com

Twitter: @ConnecticuTess